Service Hours

The Religion Curriculum requires each student to perform services during the year. The purpose of this requirement is to experience growth in spirituality, realize the satisfaction received when giving of oneself as well as the assistance a particular service offers another, and to promote a feeling of being a peacemaker that accompanies service performances.

Service can be defined in many ways. Some examples of service are listed below. To determine whether or not a student is performing a service, have them ask themselves if they are going above and beyond what is typically expected of them. If taking out the trash is a regular chore; it would not be considered a service. It would be a service, however, if taking out the trash is a constant means of argument to get the chore done, and your child suddenly performs the task without being reminded In this situation, the service of being a peacemaker is achieved.

Examples of Service:

Read to a sibling

Help at home

Help at school

Volunteer at a nursing home/senior center

Spend some time with someone who is lonely

Rake leaves, shoveling snow, etc. for an elderly neighbor

Any task that makes a difference in someone’s life

Donate some time to an organization

Serve Mass when you are not assigned

Babysit for a service …not for money

Serve at Feed My Starving Children

These are just a handful of examples. There are so many other possibilities. After performing a service, the student should record it on their service hour sheet. Service hours should be completed and submitted to the student’s teacher at the end of the school year.